The RR81 Charity was set up following the death of Rhys Rubery in 2016, son of Jonathan and Joanne and brother to Catrin.
Initially it was simply an account to hold donations from family, friends and well-wishers, since then it has developed into an active fund and most recently been registered as an official charity.
On 12th July 2016, having completed the last of his exams Rhys visited the beach at Merthyr Mawr with friends for the day. On the way home he crossed the A48 near Broadlands in Bridgend. As Rhys waited in the hatched refuge in the middle of the road, facing the oncoming traffic waiting for a safe moment to cross. A motorbike, coming from the opposite direction accelerated past a stationary car, the rider didn’t see Rhys and hit him. Rhys never regained consciousness. Previously he had spoken about being an organ donor, with this wish he helped save the lives of 5 people.
Rhys was the most amazing 16-year-old boy, driven to succeed (he wanted to be a pilot, a dentist and even the CEO of Microsoft) he would have achieved whichever goal he set himself. Rhys was musical, playing the drums, guitar and piano, held a black belt in Taekwondo and played hockey for Bridgend and South Wales. Academically, Rhys was a hard worker, he applied himself in school, aiming to achieve the best grades he could, always maintaining a healthy competition with his close friends.
